Night In
by intoxicatedfloral
Summary: Much to her reluctance, Haruhi attends a sleepover with the host club. As the night passes, she learns things about her fellow club members that she'd never expect.
1. Chapter 1

As I walk to the twins' front porch, a scowl is glued onto my face. This is so stupid. I hesitate before knocking on the ornate door. I could leave right now, this very instant. Make up some illness. It's not like they'd find out. I groan, rationalizing with myself. It's only one night, and Tamaki-senpai would probably believed me if I said I was sick. I shudder, imagining him running over to my house with a bowl of hot soup and practically every doctor he could find.

My head drops in shame as I tap on the Hitachiins' door. After the second knock, it flings wide open and I'm greeted with incoherent screaming and a hug.

"Senpai, get off of me before I kill you."

Tamaki immediately lets go, dismayed. He hides behind Kyoya like a child. I stare at Kyoya, then give him an annoyed look.

"I can't believe you're okay with this, Kyoya-senpai. Don't you have better things to do tonight?"

The twins put their arms around me and grin. "Oh, come on, Haruhi. Who doesn't love a sleepover?" They pull me into the giant house with a tight grip so I can't run away.

 _This is going to be a living hell._

* * *

When we reach the living room, I find that I'm the last to arrive. Mori and Honey are sitting on a plush couch, dressed casually. I sit down on the adjacent couch and place my overnight bag on my lap. The others settle for a spot on the floor.

"Haru-chan, what took you so long?" Honey says, concerned. "We almost thought you weren't going to come!"

I sigh. "You try convincing my dad to let me crash at a party with only guys." Tamaki grows pale at the sound of my dad. I let out a small laugh and say, "When I told him that Kyoya-senpai would be here, he let me go. He's the only one that my dad trusts, I think."

Kaoru clears his throat. "Well, what do you guys want to do now? Everyone's here."

"Actually, do you guys have a bathroom I can use? These jeans are really uncomfortable, and I don't plan on wearing them the whole night, so I'll just change now."

Hikaru points to a door absently. I mutter a thank you, grab my bag, then walk down the hall.

When I come out, everyone's staring at me.

Tamaki's face turns bright red. "You look like you're naked under there, Haruhi! You're in a room full of boys, so you have to be modest!"

"Oh, grow up. It's just a big shirt. Don't worry, I have shorts on. See?" I lift up the worn t-shirt and reveal my spandex shorts underneath.

The twins groan. "Nice going, boss. It was better when we didn't know, for mystery's sake."

"Alright, you two. Is there any _real_ reason as to why we've been dragged down here, or is it just you can have an excuse to fantasize over what Haruhi wears?" Kyoya interrupts. He pushes his glasses up his nose impatiently. Leave it to him for some reasoning.

"Well, Hikaru and I thought it would be fun if we all spent the night together. I doubt you guys had any plans considering you're here now. Who knows? It might actually be a good time."

Suddenly, Honey waves a hand in the air. "I know, let's play a game! Does anyone know anything fun? Hika-chan, Kao-chan, let's play a game."

Tamaki's eyes widen in excitement. "Let's play a commoner's game!"

Everyone looks at me. Oh, great. I instantly turn to Kyoya for help (he _is_ the most rational of the group, at least), and thankfully, he steps in. "I'd rather not. Haruhi and I can stay back and watch you all."

That did not sit well with Tamaki. His face turns sullen and he runs to Kyoya's feet. "Oh, Kyoya, please! Pretty please! Just imagine, the Host Club indulging in simple commoners' play. It'll be so much fun." When Kyoya shakes his head no, Tamaki pouts and blinks sadly.

 _Please, Kyoya, don't do it. Don't fall for the puppy eyes. For the love of God, do_ not _fall for Tamaki's crap._

"Fine. Just get off of me."

The blond host cheers, alongside Honey and the twins. Mori, as expressionless as usual, claps half-halfheartedly.

I glare at Kyoya, about to complain, but he leans over and whispers, "It couldn't be helped. You know how much the king likes his games. Might I remind you of your lofty debt to the club, if that offers more motivation."

Taken aback- and scared out of my mind by the menacing face he's giving me- I say quickly, "Let's play truth or dare, everyone. Come on, it's easy."

* * *

"It's simple, really," I explain. Everyone's sitting on the carpet in a circle, eager to play. "Self-explanatory, to be frank. You just spin this bottle, and whoever it lands on has to either say a truth or do a dare. No chickening out, either. That's it. Everyone understand?" I'm focusing this question more towards Tamaki, who we all know can be easily confused.

They all say yes, so I place the plastic bottle in the middle of the circle. I give it a good spin, and we all wait anxiously for it to stop.


	2. Chapter 2

Several spins later, and it's a mess. So far, no one's picked truth, so it's been dares left and right. Kaoru's hair is drenched in a mixture of honey and flour, Tamaki's stripped down to his boxers (unwillingly), Mori has sharpie marks all over his face, two of the Hitachiin residence's windows have been shattered, and Honey's whole head is covered with icing (pretty sure that wasn't from a dare, though).

"Okay, Kyoya, it landed on you. Truth or dare?" Tamaki says.

Kyoya's head pops up from his notebook. He's been scribbling notes down since we started playing, as per usual. Uninterested, he replies, "Truth."

"How did you get those pictures of Haruhi when she was in middle school?" Kaoru asks, amazed.

He's about to answer, but I stop him. "No, no. You have to ask him something good. If not, that defeats the purpose of picking tr- wait, _what_? You have _what_?"

Tamaki flails his arms like crazy, trying to distract me. "Uh, nothing! We have nothing at all. So, we need a good question, right? Come on, let's circle up."

The group huddles aside- excluding Kyoya- and takes a moment to brainstorm on a worthy question. I look back at the Ootori boy and think. What have you got to hide, senpai? I suddenly remember when we were at the product exposition and he noticed the fake pottery.

"I've got it," I say, "Why is it that you pretend to be a jerk when you're really a nice guy? I don't get it, Kyoya-senpai. It's not a bad thing to be good."

The boys turn their heads to Kyoya, confused. He cocks his head at me.

 _They probably haven't noticed._

"Interesting. I seek out what benefits me. Why else would I put up such an effort to impress? It's all about the endgame, Haruhi. Does that cover it?"

I don't say anything back. He completely dodged the question. I'm sure the others didn't pick up on that, but I let it go anyway. I blink at him, seeing past the facade. One day I'll find out why he acts so coldly.

"Hika-chan, I spun the bottle and it stopped on you! Good thing, too, because I don't think you've gone yet. Truth or dare?" Honey says.

Hikaru takes a moment, then decides on a dare. He waits patiently as we all think of one.

A smirk crosses Kaoru's face. "I dare you to play seven minutes in heaven with Haruhi."

 _Woah, what?_

Tamaki's sputtering nonsense, completely panicked. He turns pale and is speaking in short sentences. "Seven minutes in heaven? With my little girl? No way! Uh-uh. Nope. Pick another dare; I will not stand for this!"

Clearly he and Hikaru are on the same train of thought. The older twin's completely red, glowering at his brother. "What the hell, Kaoru? What kind of dare is that? I'm not doing it."

"You have to do it, Hika-chan! No chickening out: that was one of the rules!" Honey enforces.

"Uh, you guys, I don't think it's a good idea..." My voice drifts when I see Kyoya hold up his notebook directly to me. On the page was written in dark black letters: "DEBT". He gives me the same menacing smile from before.

 _Note to self: kill Kyoya as soon as possible._

I stand up, smooth down my hair, and grab Hikaru by his shirt. "Come on, lets go. It's only for seven minutes." I mumble.

As I drag him into a nearby closet, different reactions arise. Tamaki is practically crying (Kaoru is holding him back), Honey is cheering, and Kyoya is scribbling down data. Mori is quietly observing.

When I push Hikaru into the dark room, he doesn't say a word. Well, he tries to.

"Haruhi, I- I'm really- Are we- um, so..." he stammers as I close the door shut and turn on the light. He's keeping me at an arm's length away and trembles.

Once we're locked in, I lean my back against the door and slowly slide down, exhaling. "Calm down, Hikaru. We don't actually have to make out or anything." I look up at him and smile reassuringly. Upon hearing this, the color in his face disappears and he settles. He sits down in front of me and smiles back nervously.

We sit in silence for a while. Hikaru is still uneasy, so I try to talk to him.

"I take it this is your first time. Don't worry, most people just chill out." I say, then reach out and kick his foot playfully.

He runs a hand through his hair and chuckles. "Uh, yeah, haha. I don't know what I would've done if we really had to do stuff. Pretty awkward, you know?"

"You seem like the type to go for these kinds of things, so I was surprised when you were avoiding it."

Hikaru looks at me and shrugs. He stares down at his feet. "Kaoru's a jackass."

After a few minutes, I tell Hikaru to take off his shirt. His eyes are full of panic, so I quickly explain myself.

"We need to make it look like we did something, so take your shirt off and put it back on inside-out. Do you get what I mean? Like make yourself look disheveled."

He looks at me for a second, then nods. As he undresses, I tuck a small section of my shirt in the back into my spandex, exposing my butt just a little bit. When I see Hikaru mess up his hair, I figure it's a good idea, so I do the same.

I hear a knock on the door. "Time's up," Mori says, "you can come out now." Hikaru and I stand up, prepared. I scan him over quickly for a final check. We appear decent enough; it'll convince Tamaki and Honey at the least.

Before leaving the closet, I turn around and kiss Hikaru on the cheek, making his face flush again. He's completely shocked, as expected.

I stand on my toes and whisper in his ear, "For good measure."

When I step out into the living room, I keep a shy smile and stare at the floor. Seconds later, Hikaru comes out, still blushing. I'm not sure if they can pick out our bluff, but I stick to the goofy grin on my face anyway.

The Host Club _does_ enjoy a good performance, after all.


	3. Chapter 3

The club has moved upstairs to a separate room decked out with several sleeping bags and an endless amount of pillows. Tamaki insisted on his bag being close to mine so he could protect me "in case of an intruder", much to my obvious reluctance. Honestly, I think it's because he's convinced Hikaru and I legitimately made out in the closet, and he's trying to prevent us from "doing anything else". When we came out into the living room, he tackled Hikaru and interrogated him to the fullest extent before we could pry him off.

Of course, Honey and Mori's bags are side-by-side. Tamaki also concluded that Hikaru and Kaoru should be kept apart for the night, just to break up the whole twins-conjoined-at-the-hip cliche.

After spin the bottle ended, we went on to watch a few movies (one scary, but we forgot to remember Honey in that decision so that was definitely a bad idea; it took hours for the crying to stop). In the process, I introduced the club to the wonders of microwaveable popcorn, to which they, both in awe and amazement, consumed an extreme amount of. By the end of the third movie, Kyoya decided it was a good time for everyone to go to bed. It took some serious willpower to get Tamaki to brush his teeth and wind down, but with a firm hand, Kyoya was able to manage it.

The lights in the room were shut off, everyone settled comfortably in their sleeping bags, and it was, at last, silent.

Thirty minutes in, and I can't sleep. My stomach is writhing, making little noises. I reach over to my side and check the time on my phone. It's 1:15 AM.

 _I haven't eaten since lunch. No wonder I'm so hungry._

Carefully, I unzip myself from my bag and stand up. I might as well go downstairs and find something to eat. I tread lightly pass Tamaki as to not disturb him (or his teddy bear), and tiptoe out of the room, careful not to accidentally step on someone.

* * *

When I finally get downstairs to the kitchen, I stumble around looking for the light switch. My fingers graze the plastic switch, and I flip it on. Sitting on the marble kitchen island in front of me is Mori, digging into a tub of ice cream.

"Mori-senpai, what are you doing here? I thought everyone was asleep."

He holds up the carton of rocky road for me to see. "Probably the same reason as you." He leans over, grabs a spoon from a nearby drawer, and offers it to me.

I lift myself up onto the island next to him and take the spoon. He places the tub in between us and I scoop out a little of the ice cream, then shovel it into my mouth. It dissolves immediately, leaving a rich chocolaty taste.

For a while it's just us taking turns at the tub. My heart warms with each decadent spoonful. The only ice cream we have at home are those freezable popsicles, so this is definitely the highlight of my day.

"That was a good question, you know." Mori suddenly says, eyes forward.

"What are you talking about?"

He scoops another bit of ice cream, then brings it to his mouth. "To Kyoya. He'd never answer it, but it's still good."

"Oh, yeah. He dodged the question so quickly, I figured it was best to let it go. Do you know anything about Kyoya-senpai? It's just that he's so detached sometimes."

"You have to understand that he's a third son, so there's no hope in him becoming a successor to The Ootori Group. The CEO titles rightfully belong to his older brothers. They're already brilliant on their own, so Kyoya is constantly under extreme stress to impress his father's high standards."

 _That sounds awful. I could never imagine never being good enough, no matter how hard I tried._

"That aside," he continues, "he knows the situation he's in. He's keeping himself confined into an impossible expectation for some reason. Still, everyone cracks eventually. It's just a matter of time until he becomes self-aware, too. That's probably why he hangs around Tamaki so much. Tamaki lives in a different world."

"Wow, senpai, you're really observant. I've never heard you speak this much."

"The 'strong and silent' type is fitting."

I laugh. "My title sounds just as stupid. Being a 'natural' is easy. All it takes is good manners and genuine conversation. Throw in a smile or two, then you're good to go. I'm surprised that the girls request me at all."

"Kyoya is glad that you're so popular, though. Makes for good business. There'd be a lot a sad faces if you left."

"You think so?"

"Definitely. Tamaki, for one. I'm sure you know about him. Hikaru would be pretty torn up, too."

"Why him?"

Mori looks at me and blinks. "Because he's in love with you."

My spoon falls out of my hand, and it rattles as it hits the tile floor. _Hikaru is in love with me?_ Shaken, I ask what him what he means.

"It was quite clever what you two pulled, back in the closet," he says, "I figured Hikaru would be too scared to try anything. You're quick on your feet."

"That explains why he was so nervous; I just thought he was shy. I didn't think it would really mean anything for him. Was it obvious that we faked it?"

"It was believable enough."

I leave it alone at that, then scooch over closer to Mori. I lean my head against his shoulder and sigh. We sit quietly for a while, staring at blank the kitchen walls.

Moments later, I ask, "Would you miss me if I left, Mori-senpai?"

Mori gets up and stands in front of me. He smiles and ruffles my hair. "Of course I would, Haruhi." He walks away, leaving me alone in the kitchen.

I smile at the sound of my name- he hardly ever says it. I pull my legs up onto the island, hugging them. My face flushes when I replay the conversation in my head.

 _Hikaru loves me?_


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Hi everyone! Thank you all for the favorites, kind reviews, and follows.** **I think this is going to be the final chapter of Night In, so thanks for sticking around for the ride! x**

* * *

I'm still sitting on the kitchen island, completely thrown off guard. The words are still ringing in my ears.

 _Because he's in love with you._

There's no way Hikaru could have feelings for me. I mean, how could he? I certainly never noticed- he definitely doesn't profess his undying love for me like Tamaki does. He's so different. That explains why he makes so many passes at me.

My mind suddenly recalls the day the twins fought. When Kaoru called out Hikaru for liking me, he completely denied it, then proceeded to insult me. I slap my palm to my forehead. I feel like we're in elementary school: whenever the boys would like someone, they would tease them. This is all too much for me.

I glance at the clock on the oven. It's nearly 2. I might as well go up now. No point in staying down here any longer.

I hop down from the island, put the (almost melted) ice cream away, and turn off the kitchen light.

* * *

When I creep back upstairs to where the boys are, I hear the peaceful sound of light snoring. Well, at least they're asleep. Before stepping into the room, I take a deep breath and calm myself down.

I tread carefully back to my spot next to Tamaki. He's clutching on to his teddy bear, mumbling something about his "little princess". I roll my eyes. God, he's like a child. The host club's king still sleeps with a stuffed animal. After a split second, I decide against sleeping next to him after all.

Carefully, I bend down and pick up my sleeping bag. When it makes a crinkling noise, I cringe. Hopefully that wasn't too loud. Tamaki shifts, but other than that he's completely knocked out.

I bundle up the bag and walk over to the other side of the room. I crouch down again, roll it out, and as quietly as I can manage, slip back into the sleeping bag. For a minute, I don't say anything. Then, I force myself to let out a small whisper.

"Hey, Hikaru."

There's no instant reply, but soon enough, one comes. "Hi, Haruhi."

"Couldn't sleep?"

The red haired boy turns his head over to look at me. I wonder if he can really see me through this darkness. "Not really. Tamaki's going to kill us in the morning, you know."

"I don't care. It's not like we're sleeping in the _same_ bag or anything." I turn to look at him, too. I can make out the whites of his eyes. He blinks, then shifts his gaze elsewhere.

Mori's voice finds its way back into my head. I push it out and bite my lip.

"Hikaru?" I don't dare look at him, so I keep my eyes forward.

"Yeah, Haruhi?"

"Are you in love with me?"

No answer. I mentally kick myself for being so upfront; I probably scared him off. Each second that passes is like a dagger in my chest. Moments later, he speaks.

"I think so."

My heart pounds. So Mori was right. Not knowing what to say, I take my turn at silence.

"Hey, Haruhi?" Hikaru asks in a small voice.

"Yes?"

"Do you think you could ever love me back?"

I pause. This is it, this is the defining moment. This could change it all. What am I supposed to say? Do I feel the same? Come on, I have to say _something_.

Memories flash in my head. Late night study sessions with Hikaru where I'd try to teach him some English. Us trapped in Nekozawa's net on Halloween. Him, feeding me that cookie. Me in his arms under the church altar. His jealous tendencies. My constant nagging. Trading lunches. Always texting each other. Cramming before exams. Inside jokes.

"I don't know."

And the truth is, I don't. I really don't know if I can love Hikaru back yet. Hell, I've just only now realized how big a part he has in my life.

He doesn't reply, and I can't bring myself to speak, either. Sometimes it's best not to say anything at all.

Minutes pass, and I lift my hand off my stomach and reach over. I take Hikaru's shaky hand in mine and squeeze it softly. He soon squeezes back and looks at me. Just in case, if he can really see me, I give a little smile.

We, shaky hand-in-hand, fall silent. The room is pitch black, and together, we stare up at the ceiling, unsure of what's to come next.


End file.
